Laboratory Safety Rules and Guidelines

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• The students are expected to follow proper laboratory safety

protocol, proper waste disposal procedures and integrate current

good laboratory practices in performing each laboratory experiment

1. Dress appropriately in the laboratory. Wear a

laboratory gown or coat to protect your clothing and

minimize skin exposure. Shoes should completely cover

the feet area (sandals are not allowed and as much as

possible heeled shoes should not be used). Long hair

should be tied back.

2. Wear protective goggles or glasses at all times in the

laboratory. Goggles are eye-protection so that when

there are liquid that splashes it will not come into the

eyes. Contact lenses increase the risk of problems with

eye safety even when protective goggles are worn.

Inform your instructor if you are wearing contact

lenses.

3. Keep your working areas organized and clean as

you work. Put your personal belonging like bags and

books away from the work areas. Chairs and other

obstacles should be set aside. After each laboratory

experiments and activities, clean your work areas and

make sure that gas valves and water faucets are closed.

Clean and dry glassware and equipment before

returning to the stock room.

11

MACALALAD – GAYETA - BASILAN | BATSTATEU

4. Keep all chemical reagents (solids and liquids) in

the assigned dispensing area. Do not bring the

containers of any chemical reagents in your work

area. Use test tubes, beakers, weigh boats and other

applicable containers to obtain chemicals from the

dispensing areas.

5. Keep the balance and weighing area clean. Do not

place chemicals directly on the balance pans instead

use weighing papers or boats or any applicable

containers for your samples. Never weigh hot

objects.

6. Check the name on the chemical reagent bottles

before using them. Label every beaker, test tubes

and containers where chemicals are transferred.

7. Avoid contaminating chemical reagents.

a. Never return unused chemicals to the reagent

bottles. This is a possible source of possible

contamination on the entire content of the bottle.

Do not insert medicine droppers or pipets into

reagent bottles; instead pour a little into a smaller

container.

b. Use a clean, dry spatula in getting solids out of the

reagent bottle. A dirty spatula will contaminate

both the portion taken and that which is left in the

reagent bottle.
c. To put solids in a test tube, a folded piece of paper

about 2 inches long and slightly wider than the

diameter of the test tube is used. Hold the test tube

in a horizontal position and slide the folded paper

with a solid at one end. Incline the test tube and

gently tap the paper until all the solids are at the

bottom of the tube. In this way, the side of the tube

is kept clean.

d. The covers of the reagents bottle should not be

interchanged.

12

SCI 401 –GENERAL CHEMISTRY

e. To weigh solid reagents, a clean, dry watch glass

can be used as container. Weigh the container first,

then place the solid and get the total mass. To

determine the weight of the solid reagent, subtract

the mass of the container from the total mass.

8. Dispose waste properly. Do not put anything into

the trash or sink without thinking.

a. Broken glasses should be pick and return to the

stock area for proper disposal.

b. Organic solvents should not be poured into the

sink since they are immiscible with water. Return

the waste to the stock area to be put on the

“organic solvent wastes”. Solutions with heavy

metals should be put on containers for “heavy

metal waste”.

c. Solutions poured in the sink should be washed

with plenty of water.

d. Ask your instructor if you are not sure how to

properly dispose your wastes.

e. In order to minimize damage to the environment,

chemical wastes must be separated into categories

and carefully labelled as to their contents. Please

read and follow the labels on the waste bottles to

ensure that your chemical wastes are treated

safely and appropriately. You will find containers

for:

i. General Organic Waste (flammable)

ii. Halogenated Hydrocarbons (non-

flammable)

iii. Chromic Acid Solutions (these have been

phased out)

iv. Lead

v. Silver

vi. Other Heavy Metals

vii. Waste from specific experiments in some

cases

viii. Acids

13

MACALALAD – GAYETA - BASILAN | BATSTATEU

ix. Bases

In some experiments, acids and bases will be neutralized to a pH of 6 -

10 (State law) as part of the experiment and flushed down the drain with

lots of water. Your instructor will give you instructions in particular

cases. Indicator solution or paper will be available in the lab.

x. Broken thermometers. It create the special problem of spilled mercury (a

toxic heavy metal). Report such accidents immediately to your

instructor; usually any mercury which cannot be collected is reacted

with sulfur or absorbed with a special kit before disposal as heavy metal

waste.

xi. Broken glass. Broken glass or porcelain is swept up into a dust pan and

disposed of in a special container for broken glass. Please don't use your

fingers.

9. Avoid all direct contact with chemicals.

a. Wash your hands immediately anytime

you get chemicals on them and after every

laboratory activities.

b. Clean immediately all spillage before it

dries up or goes into your skin and things.

c. Never use your mouth when using a pipet.

d. Never eat or drink in the laboratory.

e. Do not look directly into the open end of a

test tube while a reaction is being

conducted. Do not point the open end of a

test tube at someone while heating or

mixing.

f. Inhale odors and chemicals with great

caution. To determine the odor of any

chemicals, do not inhale the fumes directly.

Waft vapors with your hand toward your

nose. Use the fume hood for all irritating and

toxic vapors.

14

SCI 401 –GENERAL CHEMISTRY

10. Handle glasses with precautions.

a. Do not heat graduated cylinders, burets,

pipets or bottles with a Bunsen burner

flame.

b. Do not hold a test tube in your hands during

a chemical reaction.

c. In heating a small amount of solid or liquid

I a test tube, hold the test tube with a test

tube holder then incline it at an angle of 450

while moving it back and forth over the

flame on the Bunsen burner. Avoid looking

at the test tube directly while it is being

heated. Never point the mouth of the test

tube towards anyone while heating

d. Do not touch glass that has been near a

flame. Use proper holder to handle them.

Do not put directly on the laboratory table

any heated containers.

e. Always fire-polish the ends of freshly cut

glass tubing. NEVER attempt to force glass

tubing through the hole of a stopper.

Instead, make sure that both tubing and

hole are wet with soapy water. Protect

hands with several layers of towel when

inserting glass into a stopper and insert the

tubing with a screw-like motion.

f. Never use a thermometer as a stirrer!

Always support a thermometer in a beaker

or flask with a clamp. If a mercury

thermometer breaks, immediately contact

the laboratory instructor and restrict

access to the area of contamination until

cleanup can be arranged.

15

MACALALAD – GAYETA - BASILAN | BATSTATEU

10. Learn the location and proper use of safety

equipment (fire extinguisher, eye wash, safety

shower and first aid kits).

a. Fire extinguisher can be used on small or minor fire

or for smothering fires. To use the fire extinguisher:

Pull the pin.

Aim the nozzle at the base of the fire

Squeeze the handle.

Sweep the fire.

b. Eye Wash Fountain for rinsing chemicals from the

eyes.
c. Safety Shower for rinsing chemicals off the body.

11. Be aware of Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS). It

is a document that provides workers with

procedures for safely handling or working with a

particular substance. It includes technical

information like boiling points, toxicities,

reactivities, and various numbers. It also includes

instructions regarding necessary protective

equipment, how to handle spills, first aid

suggestions, storage and disposal, and the general

health effects. Its main purpose is to safeguard

occupational health.

12. Never work alone in the laboratory area.

13. Report all accidents to your instructor no

matter how small it may seem.

14. Do not perform unauthorized experiments.

15. Do not enter the laboratory room without your

instructor.

16

SCI 401 –GENERAL CHEMISTRY

Common Laboratory Glassware and

Materials

Glassware used in all chemistry courses:

Glassware commonly used for conducting reactions and purifications:

17

MACALALAD – GAYETA - BASILAN | BATSTATEU

Tools used in all chemistry courses:

Various equipment in the organic chemistry laboratory:

Clamps for securing apparatuses

18

SCI 401 –GENERAL CHEMISTRY

Burners and tubing:

Glassware used in microscale work

Watch the video on the Chemical Laboratory by Rebelen Cabello

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Ni5UOGp0hk&feature=youtu.be

LEARNING ENRICHMENT ACTIVITIES

19

MACALALAD – GAYETA - BASILAN | BATSTATEU

Measurements

Making observations is fundamental to all science. These observations can be

qualitative or quantitative. A quantitative observation is called a measurement, which

always has two parts: a number and a scale (called a unit). Both parts must be present for a

measurement to be meaningful. It is the process of getting the actual measure of an object’s

dimension or property in comparison with the standard unit of acquiring the value. A

qualitative observation does not involve a number.

Scientists recognized long ago that standard systems of units had to be adopted if

measurements were to be useful. Different standards were adopted in different parts of the

world. The two major systems are the English system used in the United States and the metric

system used by most of the rest of the industrialized world.

Most scientists in all countries have used the metric system for many years. In 1960,

an international agreement set up a system of units called the International System (le

Système International in French), or the SI system. This system is based on the metric system

and units derived from the metric system. The fundamental SI units are listed in the Table 1.

Table 1. Fundamental SI Units

Physical Quantity Name of Unit Abbreviation

Mass kilogram kg

Length meter m

Time second s

Temperature kelvin K

Electric Current ampere A

Amount of Substance mole mol

Luminous Intensity candela Cd

Because the fundamental units are not always convenient, prefixes are used to change

the size of the unit. These are listed in Table 2.

20

SCI 401 –GENERAL CHEMISTRY

Table 2. Prefixes Used in the SI System

Prefix Symbol Meaning Exponential Notation

exa E 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 1018

peta P 1 000 000 000 000 000 1015

tera T 1 000 000 000 000 1012

giga G 1 000 000 000 109

mega M 1 000 000 106

kilo k 1 000 103

hecto h 100 102

deka da 10 101

- - 1 100

deci d 0.1 10-1

centi c 0.01 10-2

milli m 0.001 10-3

micro μ 0.000001 10-6

nano n 0.000000001 10-9

pico p 0.000000000001 10-12

femto f 0.000000000000001 10-15

atto a 0.000000000000000001 10-18

One physical quantity that is very important in chemistry is volume, which is not a

fundamental SI unit but is derived from length.

The most common conversion factors for volume is shown below.

1 L = 1 (dm)3 = (10 cm)3 = 1000 cm3

1cm3 = 1 mL

1L = 100 cm3 = 100 Ml

1.0 Basic Types of Quantity:

a. Fundamental Quantities. It is referred to as the basic quantities. Quantities which

are measured by the direct method. The units assigned to the fundamental quantities

are called fundamental units.

The fundamental units meter, kilogram and second (MKS) are the standard units

for length, mass, and time, respectively. However for smaller quantities, centimeter,

gram, and second are used as fundamental units (CGS). It is important to consider these

units, particularly in solving problems.

21

MACALALAD – GAYETA - BASILAN | BATSTATEU

b. Derived Quantities. Quantities that emanate or a result of the combination of

fundamental quantities after a set of operations. Area, volume, and density are some

examples of derived quantities.

2.0 Significant Figures

It is very important to realize that a measurement always has some degree of

uncertainty. The uncertainty of a measurement depends on the precision of the measuring

device. Consider the measurement of the volume of a liquid using a buret.

Table shows that the first three numbers (20.1) remain the same regardless of who

makes the measurement; these are called certain digits. However, the digit to the right of the

1 must be estimated and therefore varies; it is called an uncertain digit. We customarily

report a measurement by recording all digits that are known with certainty plus the first

uncertain digit. This is done by always recording the certain digits and the first uncertain

digit (the estimated number). These numbers are called the significant figures of a

measurement.
Rules for Counting Significant Figures

1. Non-zero integers. Non-zero integers always count as significant figures. The number

1458 has four (4) non-zero digits, all of which count as significant figures.

2. Zeros. There are three classes of zeros:

a. Leading zeros are zeros that precede all the non-zero digits. These do not count

as significant figures. The number 0.0025, the three zeros simply indicate the

position of the decimal point. This number has only two (2) significant figures.

b. Captive zeros are zeros between non-zero digits. These always count as significant

figures. The number 1.008 has four (4) significant figures.

22

SCI 401 –GENERAL CHEMISTRY

c. Trailing zeros are zeros at the right end of the number. They are significant only

if the number contains a decimal point. The number 100 has only one significant

figure, whereas the number 1.00 x 102 has three (3) significant figures. The

number one hundred written as 100. Also has three (3) significant figures.

3. Exact numbers. Many times calculations involve numbers that were not obtained

using measuring devices but were determined by counting: 10 experiments, 3 apples,

8 molecules. Such numbers are called exact numbers. They can be assumed to have

an infinite number of significant figures. Other examples of exact numbers are the 2

in 2πr (the circumference of a circle) and the 4 and the 3 in 4/3πr3 (the volume of a

sphere). Exact numbers also can arise from definitions. For example, 1 inch is defined

as exactly 2.54 centimeters. Thus, in the statement 1 in 5 2.54 cm, neither the 2.54

nor the 1 limits the number of significant figures when used in a calculation.

Note that the number 1.00 x 102 is written in exponential notation. This type of
notation has at least two advantages: the number of significant figures can be easily

indicated, and fewer zeros are needed to write a very large or very small number. For

example, the number 0.000060 is much more conveniently represented as 6.0 x 10-5. (The

number has two significant figures.) It is often necessary to set the decimal point using the

power-of-10 notation to avoid introducing the appearance of unwanted significant figures.

Scientific notation is a form of shorthand used to write an extremely large and

exceedingly small numbers. A number in scientific notation has two parts. The first part is a

number between 1 and 10 (N). The second part is a power of 10 (10n) as shown below

N x 10n

The exponent n can be a positive or negative integer. To write numbers in scientific

notation, move the decimal point such that you have a number between 1 and 10. Determine

the correct exponent by counting the number of times the decimal point is moved. When the

decimal point is moved to the right, the exponent is written as a negative number. When the

decimal point is moved to the left, the exponent is written as a positive number.

23

MACALALAD – GAYETA - BASILAN | BATSTATEU

Example:

a. 0.00567 5.67 x 10-3 b. 456000 4.56 x 105

Rules for Significant Figures in Mathematical Operations

a. For multiplication or division, the number of significant figures in the result is the same

as the number in the least precise measurement used in the calculation. For example,

consider the calculation

4.56 x 1.4 = 6.38 Final answer = 6.4

The product should have only two significant figures, since 1.4 has only two significant
figures.

b. For addition or subtraction, the result has the same number of decimal places as the

least precise measurement used in the calculation. For example, consider the sum

22.13

17.0

2.024

_____________

41.154 Final answer 41.2

The correct result is 31.1, since 18.0 has only one decimal place.

3.0 Precision and Accuracy

Two terms often used to describe the reliability of measurements are precision and

accuracy. Accuracy refers to the agreement of a particular value with the true value. Precision

refers to the degree of agreement among several measurements of the same quantity.

Precision reflects the reproducibility of a given type of measurement. The difference between

these terms is illustrated by the results of three different dart throws shown below

Limiting term has two

significant figures

Two significant

figures

Limiting term has one

decimal place
One decimal place

24

SCI 401 –GENERAL CHEMISTRY

Desired unit

Given unit x ___________________ = Desired unit

Given unit

abc

Two different types of errors are illustrated in Figure above. A random error (also

called an indeterminate error) means that a measurement has an equal probability of being

high or low. This type of error occurs in estimating the value of the last digit of a

measurement. The second type of error is called systematic error (or determinate error).

This type of error occurs in the same direction each time; it is either always high or always

low. Fig. (a) indicates large random errors (poor technique). Fig. (b) indicates small random

errors but a large systematic error, and Fig. (c) indicates small random errors and no

systematic error.

4.0 Dimensional Analysis

It is often necessary to convert a given result from one system of units to another. The

best way to do this is by a method called the unit factor method or, more commonly,

dimensional analysis. The pattern to illustrate the use of this method is shown below.

Some equivalents in the English and metric systems are given below.

Poor precision

Poor accuracy
Good precision

Poor accuracy

Good precision

Good accuracy

25

MACALALAD – GAYETA - BASILAN | BATSTATEU

Example 1

A pencil is 7.00 in long. What is its length in centimeters?

Solution

Since we want to convert from inches to centimeters, we need the equivalence

statement 2.54 cm = 1 in. The correct unit factor in this case is !.#$ &'

( )*

7.00 �� �

!.#$ &'

( )* = 7.00 (2.54)�� = 17.8 ��

Here the inch units cancel, leaving centimeters, as requested.

26

SCI 401 –GENERAL CHEMISTRY

Sample Problem 3

Example 2
A student has entered a 10.0 km run. How long is the run in miles?

Solution

This conversion can be accomplished in several different ways. Since we

have the equivalence statement 1 m = 1.094 yd, we will proceed by a path

that uses this fact. Before we start any calculations, let us consider our

strategy. We have kilometres, which we want to change to miles. We can do

this by the following route:

To proceed in this way, we need the following equivalence statements.

1 km = 1 000 m

1 m = 1.094 yd

1760 yd = 1 mi

10.0 �� �

1000 �

1 �� �

1.094 ��

1�

1 ��

1 760 �� = 6.216 ��

Note in this case that 1 mi equals exactly 1760 yd by designation.

Thus 1760 is an exact number.

Since the distance was originally given as 10.0 km, the result can

have only three significant figures and should be rounded to 6.22 mi. Thus,

10.0 km =6.22 mi
kilometers meters yards miles

27

MACALALAD – GAYETA - BASILAN | BATSTATEU

Example 3

The speed limit on many highways in the United States is 55 mi/h. What

number would be posted in kilometres per hour?

Solution

We use the following unit factors to make the required conversion:

55 ��

h�

1760 ��

1 �� �

1 ��

1 .094 �� �

1 ��

1 000 � = 88 ��/h

Note that all units cancel except the desired kilometres per hour

Result obtained by

rounding only at the

end of the calculation

Example 4

A Japanese car is advertised as having a gas mileage of 15 km/L. Covert this

rating to miles per gallon.

Solution
We use the following unit factors to make the required conversion:

15 ��

��

1000 �

1 �� �

1.094 ��

1�

1 ��

1 760 �� �

1�

1.06 ��

4 ��

1 ��� = 35 ��/���

Result obtained by

rounding only at the

end of the calculation

Example 5

The latest model Corvette has an engine with a displacement of 6.20 L. What

is the displacement in units of cubic inches?

Solution

We use the following unit factors to make the required conversion:

6.20 � �

1 ��+

28.32 � �
(12 ��)+

(1 ��)+ = 378 ��+

Note that the unit factor for conversion of feet to inches must be cubed to

accommodate the conversion of ft3 to in3

28

SCI 401 –GENERAL CHEMISTRY

7.0 Temperature

Although many of the SI units have found their way gradually into everyday use, the

units for temperature may be the least familiar. Temperature scales arise from the choice of

two standard reference points that can be used to calibrate temperature with the use of a

thermometer. The familiar Fahrenheit scale originally chose body temperature as one

reference and set it at 100°F. The second reference point was the coldest temperature that

could be achieved by adding salt to ice water, a practice that lowers the melting point of ice.

This established 0°F, and the temperature range between the two points was divided into

100 equal units. The scale is now defined by setting the freezing point of water at 32°F and

the boiling point of water at 212°F. The Celsius scale was developed in a similar way, but

with the freezing point of pure water set at 0°C and the boiling point of water at 100°C.

Conversions between the two scales are given by the following expressions: